COPYFOX
by AssasinNinja
Summary: PRE-TIME SKIP. What if the Shadow clone jutsu wasn't the only thing Naruto learned from the forbidden scroll, what if he suddenly became the most powerful ninja in konoha? What if Sakura started liking him more than Sasuke? READ TO FIND OUT!
1. Chapter 1

**OKAY THIS TAKES PLACE BEFORE KAKASHI'S TEST. IT STARTS NEAR THE END OF THE CHAPTER IN THE MANGA, WHEN KAKASHI SAYS THEY NEED TO AIM TO KILL.**

**ENJOY!**

**I DONT OWN NARUTO.**

Uzumaki Naruto stood in front of Hatake Kakashi, his teammates beside him.

"You couldn't even dodge an eraser," He smiled sheepishly and closed his eyes, "You're gonna get yourself killed."

Kakashi sighed at the fresh genin.

"Only the weak speak loudly, now let's forget the dunce and we'll start on my signal!" Kakashi stated smugly.

Naruto was hit with a wave of anger,_ 'dunce! DUNCE! DUNCE!'_, his mind flashed back and forth between two images, a broken and bleeding Kakashi...and the two bells strapped to his waist.

He whipped a kunai from it's pouch and twirled it in his fingers before he prepared to throw it at the jonin.

A hand grabbed his, slapped him on the head, and pointed his kunai at his own neck.

"Not so fast," It was Kakashi, Naruto hadn't even seen him move, "I didn't say go."

Naruto closed his eyes slowly...when he reopened them they were a dark deep green, with no pupil, and spirals emiting from the edges.

"Now you did." Where Naruto once was there was now just green smoke, and Kakashi was holding on to nothing.

"What the he-" Kakashi scratched his head. "Um okay...anyway...ready, steady, go!"

Sasuke and Sakura jumped away in a flash.

"The basics of all shinobi arts is to become invisible...eradicate yourself." Kakashi scanned the area, quickly spotting Sasuke and Sakura.

_'They are very well hidden.'_

"Eh! Kakashi-sensei!" Kakashi turned to see Naruto Uzumaki, his hands gripped on the collar of his jacket. "C'mon, lets do this."

Naruto unzipped his orange and blue jacket and ripped it off his shoulders. Underneath he wore an armored vest, on his arms and chest he had wrapped an army's worth of shuriken and kunai. Several scrolls were wrapped across his waist.

"I'm prepared for this battle," Naruto adjusted his hitai-ate, "How 'bout you?"

Kakashi sighed and kicked the dirt in front of him.

"Naruto, weapons are only as good as the shinobi that wields them...it's not the wand it's the wizard." Kakashi reached for his pocket and pulled out a red book. "You are simply the worst ninja in the village...all those weapons make me respect you even less."

Naruto stomped on the ground, a wave pushed out at his feet, causing the earth to crack and split below him.

_'What is Naruto doing! That idiot'll get himself killed.' _Sakura observed the two from under a nearby bush.

"You've made a mistake in under-estimating me!" Naruto shouted and charged at Kakashi.

Kakashi sighed and put his hand out at the last minute, planning on stopping Naruto in his tracks.

Instead a large and heavy object hit him in the chest, Kakashi looked down in shock to see-

_'A log!'_

"Good catch." Naruto's voice came from behind Kakashi. A powerful kick shot Kakashi into the air, as he was flying down to earth two heavy fists rammed into his chest, sending him spinning into the hard ground.

Kakashi stood up slowly.

"A subsitution...I must admit Naruto, I didn't expect that from you," Kakashi put away his book, "But no more games, show me what you've got."

_'How did that fool catch him off guard like that!' _Sasuke was watching from a nearby tree, _'I didn't even see that one coming.'_

_'Wow Naruto, where did that come from!'_ Sakura smiled at her goofy teammate's hidden skills, _'That was really cool.'_

Naruto nodded at Kakashi, and the two encircled eachother.

"So...Kakashi-sensei, they call you the copy-cat ninja...Why is that?" Naruto grabbed his left shoulder.

Kakashi smirked behind his mask.

"I'm glad you asked Naruto,"_ 'I wouldn't normally use my sharingan on a genin...but Naruto seems to be far more powerful than his report led me to believe.' _"SHARINGAN!"

Kakashi pulled his headband up off of his eye, revealing the sharingan in all it's glory.

_'THATS THE SHARINGAN!' _ Sasuke almost jumped from the tree in anger, _'My clan's kekai genkai!'_

"Heh," Naruto closed his eye's and pushed his arm hard into his shoulder, a wave of chakra pulsed through his arm.

_'A seal?' _ Kakashi pulled out a kunai, _'What is he doing?'_

"KEKAI-GENKAI DUPLICATION!" Naruto opened his eyes, his swirling green eyes warped into a duplicate of Kakashi's sharingan.

_'WHAT THE HELL!'_ Sasuke and Kakashi's heads were in a bizzare state of utter confusion.

_'Cool!'_ Sakura crawled out of the bush she was under, "NARUTO! How'd you learn to do that!"

Naruto closed his eye's and smiled at Sakura.

_'She's acknowledging me!'_

Suddenly Kakashi dropped down above Sakura, landing on her.

"It was not smart of you to come out of hiding Sakura."

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Naruto walked toward the two.

Kakashi quickly tied Sakura's hands together and stood up.

"Naruto...you need to tell me how you were able to do that."

Naruto shook his head.

"Let her go first."

"Naruto...tell me!"

Naruto clenched his fists.

"LET. HER. GO!"

Kakashi shook his head and ran towards Naruto.

"If you won't tell me...I'll just have to make you!"

Naruto gave Kakashi a lopsided smirk.

Kakashi swung his fist, only to have Naruto duck and backhand Kakashi's gut.

"It would seem that two Sharingan are better than one!"

Naruto twirled and kicked Kakashi in the back of the head. Knocking him out cold.

Naruto reached down and grabbed the two bells. He looked over to Sakura, who was now sitting up on her knees. He shook the bells and the jingled together.

"Naruto...THAT WAS FREAKING AWESOME!" Sakura yelled so loud that she lost her balance and fell over, before she hit the ground, two strong arms caught her.

"Thanks Sakura-chan." Sakura blushed at the suffix added to her name. "Here..."

Naruto sliced the ropes from Sakura's hands and handed her a bell. He then pocketed the other.

"Hold on one second!" Naruto turned to see Sasuke, rage in his eyes, "I GET A BELL TOO!"

Naruto fidgeted, and shrugged at the Uchiha. Sasuke redirected his gaze at Sakura.

"Sakura...give me your bell." Sasuke reached his hand forward, and Sakura slowly grabbed her bell, her eyes filled with sadness.

Naruto grabbed Sasuke's arm.

"WAIT!" Sasuke looked up at Naruto, ready to punch him in the face, "...take mine."

Naruto handed his bell to Sasuke, who took it greedily.

"But Naruto!" Sakura stood up, "You're the only one who deserves a bell!"

Sakura shoved her bell in Naruto's face.

"Here...take mine." Sakura closed her eyes as Naruto walked toward her, _'Well, one more year at the academy won't hurt me.'_

Sakura felt warmth as her hands were closed the bell still inside.

"No Sakura, I gave that bell to you...I expect you to keep it."

Naruto flashed a smile and gave her a thumbs up.

"I've failed before, graduating again won't bother me!"

Naruto closed his eyes and let the warmth of the sun bathe him.

"Naruto...you are too sweet."

Naruto's eyes shot open, they were back to his normal blue.

"Th-th-anks S-a-akura-cha-an!"

Several hours later, and Kakashi opened his eyes slowly.

Sakura sat in front of him, Sasuke slightly behind her.

_'But where is...'_ Kakashi's eyes finally found Naruto, his orange coat back on, his eye's blue once more, he was leaning against a tree. Several yards away from them.

Kakashi moved to stand up, but found he was tied down.

"Very funny guys...now untie me."

Sakura shook her head, then raised her bell, Kakashi saw the other in Sasuke's hand.

_'Naruto gave them both to his teammates?'_ Kakashi smiled, _'Just as selfless as Iruka described him!'_

"Okay, you got the bells...you pass...good job." Sakura stepped forward and untied Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei...there were only two bells." Sakura turned to Naruto, "What about Naruto?"

Kakashi stood up and stretched his back.

"As I recall I said if you don't get a bell you fail." Sakura's face fell. "Naruto was of course the first to get a bell, so he passes."

Sakura sweatdropped.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE!" Kakashi shrunk back at Sakura's anger.

"Um...you never...asked?"

From afar, Naruto's triumphant yell echoed.

"I PASSED!"

Sakura blushed, embarrassed by Naruto's public and passionate display.

"NARUTO!" Kakashi yelled, and Naruto froze,"We need to talk...in private."

Naruto frowned.

"C'mon...I'll treat you to some Ramen."

Kakashi turned and left the training fields, Naruto smiled widely and sped off after him.

"BYE SAKURA-CHAN!"

"Bye Naruto!"

Then, Sasuke and Sakura were alone.

"Isn't he incredible Sasuke?"

Sasuke mearly turned and left.

At the Ichiraku ramen stand, Naruto chowed down, he was on his seventh bowl. Kakashi sat next to him, regretting his decision to let him eat before he answered any questions. When Naruto began to order his eighth bowl, Kakashi stopped him.

"Naruto, we need to discuss your 'abilities'." Naruto nodded and stuffed his face.

"You mean mah keghay genghay duhplucayshon!" Naruto swallowed.

"Yes...thats the one."

Naruto pushed his final bowl of ramen aside and crossed his arms.

"It was one of the techniques in the scroll Mizuki tricked me into stealing."

Kakashi nodded.

"A forbidden jutsu?"

Naruto shook his head.

"Naruto, you are not allowed to use forbidden jutsu...you should be lucky that the Hokage allows you to use the shadow clone jutsu."

Naruto nodded.

"On top of that, you told the Hokage that you only learned one jutsu! Here's the deal...If you promise to never use that jutsu again, I won't tell the Hokage."

Naruto frowned.

"I can't do that."

Kakashi sighed.

"Why not?"

Naruto took off his jacket, then pulled off his weapon clad shirt.

Kakashi's eyes widened at a large seal on Naruto's left shoulder.

"It isn't a jutsu."

Kakashi sighed once more.

"Well stand still and I'll remove the seal."

"WAIT!" Kakashi stopped his hand, which was now resting just above the seal, "The seal, it's intertwined with me...that's why it's forbidden...it can't be removed."

Kakashi pulled his hand back to his body.

"Well...I suppose," Kakashi scratched his head, "I'll have to train you to use it."

Naruto smiled.

"AWESOME! This'll be great...I'll be like the junior copycat ninja!"

Kakashi rubbed his eyes.

"I...guess."

Meanwhile at the Uchiha compound, Sasuke was beating a wooden dummy.

"Naruto, how did you gain so much power!" He slammed a fist into the dummy.

"I NEED TO GET STRONGER!" Sasuke stared hard at the ground, panting in anger.

"Naruto...I swear...I will defeat you one day!"

**STAY TUNED**


	2. Chapter 2

The sun shone into Naruto Uzumaki's bedroom, shortly after his alarm clock began to ring. The young man sat up and yawned, he then turned and turned off the alarm. He scratched his head and rubbed his eyes, then he hopped out of bed. He walked out of bed and made his way to his small kitchen, he then began boiling water. He yawned again and walked to his fridge, he pulled out a carton of milk and pured himself a glass, he then grabbed some ramen from his pantry and poured it into the now boiling water. He then walked back into his bedroom, opening his small closet.

He stared at his orange jacket, and his many orange pants.

"Hmm...THESE ARE NOT THE CLOTHES OF THE GENIN APPRENTICE TO THE LEGENDARY COPYCAT NINJA!" Naruto scratched his chin, and began the search for more appropriate clothing, he found his dark brown pants, usually reserved for funerals and weddings, and slid them on. He taped up the baggy bottoms, and threw on a dark t-shirt over his armored vest, he left his many weapons on his bed.

"Now...all I need is a new jacket..." He looked over at his toad wallet, sadly empty. "I'll need to find some money."

Naruto returned to his kitchen and scarfed down his ramen, he then slipped on his shinobi zori and walked into the sunny morning air.

He looked out over the crowded village of Konoha, in the distance he spotted Sakura and Ino, and jumped down.

"HEY SAKURA-CHAN!" Naruto ran towards the two, who were apparently arguing.

Sakura heard her name called from behind her, and turned to see Naruto running full speed at her.

_'Eh? What does that idiot want now?'_ Sakura sighed.

"What do you want Naruto?" Her voice bore anger and annoyance.

Naruto stopped, _'I guess things are back to the way they were...so much for acknowlagement.'_

"Sorry Sakura-chan...I didn't mean to bother you." Naruto walked off dejectedly.

Sakura's mind raced and yesterday's events returned to her memory.

"Oi! Naruto wait up!" Naruto turned around, Sakura was smiling at him, "You're not bothering me at all."

Naruto smiled back at her, and walked toward her. Ino was standing behind Sakura.

"Sakura," Ino whispered, "What the hell are you doing? You just got rid of that idiot."

Sakura flashed Ino an angry glare. Naruto now stood in front of the two, he scratched the back of his head.

"So how have you guys been?"

Ino looked at the ground and mumbled just loud enough for Naruto to hear.

"Fine...until you showed up."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at Ino, she stepped back in repulsion.

"Naruto go away! Me and fore-head were having a conversation about Sasuke-kun. Right Sakura?"

Sakura glared angriliy at Ino

"SHUT UP INO-PIG!" Naruto can stay if he wants."

Ino's eyes widenend in anger.

"This is stupid! GO AWAY NARUTO!" Ino swung a fist at Naruto, but in Naruto's mind she was moving in slow motion.

Naruto opened his eyes, revealing his dark green eyes, indicating the activation of the seal, _'SHARINGAN!'_, using the increased perception of the sharingan he dodged quickly and walked over to Sakura, turning off the seal.

"Sakura-chan, you wanna go shopping with me?" Naruto asked Sakura smugly, showing a false sense of confidence.

"Um...sure Naruto." Naruto turned and Sakura followed him away from the bewildered Ino.

"HOW THE HELL DID HE DO THAT!" She stomped her foot on the ground, _'He's never been that fast before'_

"HEY SAKURA WAIT UP!" Ino sped off after the two.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE LEARNED ANOTHER FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE!" The third Hokage glared enraged at Hatake Kakashi. "HE TOLD IRUKA HE ONLY LEARNED ONE!"

Kakashi sighed and shrugged. The third Hokage paced back and forth.

"We must forbid him from using the jutsu."

Kakashi shook his head.

"It's a seal."

"Well then release it."

Kakashi shook his head.

The Hokage sighed.

"You know...there's a reason these things are forbidden!"

Kakashi looked down at the ground and shrugged.

"...with your permission, I wish to help him develop this power."

The Hokage pulled at his face with his hand, dragging it down in frustration.

"I guess that would be better than letting him run amuck with whatever technique he has learned."

The Hokage scratched his chin.

"What does this seal do anyway?"

Kakashi sighed and began his recounting of the previous day's events. The third Hokage's eyes widened at mere mention of Naruto's new power.

"The abilitie to mimic-no copy bloodlines in their absolute form...an incredible ability. So...he kicked your ass Kakashi?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"I wasn't trying to hurt him too bad, he gave me a run for his money, but if I tried my best he wouldn't have stood a chance." Kakashi scratched his mask chin, "Which is why I want to train him."

The third Hokage nodded.

"He is your pupil Kakashi...do what you wish."

Kakashi nodded, then bowed in respect before leaping from the window.

The third Hokage walked back to the painting he was working on, a depection of the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha, it portrayed the fouth Hokage standing in quarter profile on the left of the page.

"Hmm...it's missing something." The hokage made several key brushstrokes and stood back to properly observe the painting.

The fourth Hokage now held a small bundle in his arms, a newborn baby with a shock of blond hair.

"Perfect."

Naruto could not believe his own eyes, Sakura held his arm in hers, and was leading him through a men's shinobi shop.

"Oooh, how about this one Naruto?" She shoved an elaborate looking jacket at him, "Eh...never mind."

This had been going on for ours...and Naruto enjoyed every second of it.

Ino had left after the first thiry minutes, complaining about how stupid Sakura was being.

"Maybe this one?" Another complicated jacket, "Eh...nope not your style."

Naruto smiled at her, allowing her to take control of his shopping gave him more time to bask in her presence.

"Naruto, I just want you to know I'm having so much fun," Her smile faded, replaced by a frown, "Sasuke-kun would never ever let me do this."

Naruto smiled, then frowned when Sakura turned away.

_'Is Sasuke all she ever thinks about?'_

"NARUTO!" Sakura shoved a simple grey jacket in his face, with built in forearm sleeves for weapon concealment and armor placement, "THIS IS THE ONE!"

Naruto admired the jacket, he definatley liked it.

"Yup, I like it."

Naruto turned to leave the store.

"Where are you going!"

Naruto turned toward her in embarrasment.

"I kinda don't have any money right now."

Sakura tapped her foot in rage.

"YOU MEAN I HELPED YOU FOR NOTHING!"

Naruto quickly shook his head.

"I'm still gonna buy it...I just need to find some money first."

Naruto scratched his chin and thought of quick ways to get money, getting an idea he turned to Sakura and smiled. She stared back at him in confusion.

"What?"

**MORE TO COME.**


	3. Chapter 3

"NO!"

Sakura stomped her foot in finality.

"Why not?"

"Because conning people is wrong!"

"We're suppossed to be ninjas! We're supposed to do wrong things!"

Sakura shook her head at Naruto's naiviety.

"To help others! To protect the village, not for selfish gain like this!"

"You yourself said I needed a new jacket! All you have to do is walk into the bar with me, you and me will play a game of darts-"

"Forget it Naruto!"

Sakura turned to leave.

"I thought you were an honorable shinobi...you're no worse than...than a fox!"

Naruto's head sunk, he stood dejectedely as Sakura walked away.

_'WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME!'_

He kicked a stone and began the walk home. He passed Ichiraku, yet he was to disgusted with himself to eat. He was nearing his appartment, when his nose picked up a familiar scent.

"Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi hopped down from a tree above Naruto's head, his favorite book in his hand.

"Naruto, come with me...today we begin your training."

Naruto's day instantly brightened, he nearly forgot why he was sad.

"ALLRIGHT!"

* * *

Before he knew it, Naruto had arrived at the training grounds. Kakashi stood in the center and read a few more pages before he closed his book.

"Allright Naruto, now is the sharingan the only blood-line trait you've copied so far?"

Naruto thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Well, yeah. I haven't really come into contact with a kekai genkai until I fought you..."

Kakashi slowly shook his head, a training regimine forming in his mind.

"Allright Naruto, since the sharingan is all you got, and since i've got it too, we'll just train you in it's uses!"

Kakashi took a seat and gestured for Naruto to do the same. As Naruto plopped to the ground, Kakashi began to speak.

"Okay, now you know first-hand that the Sharingan increase the vision and perception of the user, but it's greatest ability is to copy jutsus."

Naruto nodded.

"Now I'm going to perform one of my many jutsus, and I want you to recreate it, using your Sharingan."

"Right...SHARINGAN!"

Kakashi made several complicated hand-signs, too quick for Naruto to follow, and then turned his head to the left. As he place his fingers in front of his lips, fire lept out in a brilliant swirling ball. Naruto stared amazed as Kakashi ceased.

"Wh-WHAT WAS THAT!"

"It is called the fire-ball jutsu...now I want you to try it."

"Got it!" Naruto stood up, and concentrated on the rememberence of the Jutsu, he found that he knew the hand-signs, and the proper technique, and before long he was shooting fire from his lips just like Kakashi.

"Well done Naruto, well done."

* * *

Kakashi taught Naruto several more jutsus before finally calling it a day.

"Good work Naruto, tommorow meet with me in the others in the Hokage's office...there we will recieve our first mission."

"OUR FIRST MISSION, ALLRIGHT!"

When Naruto was done yelling, he quickly noticed that Kakashi had left.

"Oh... I'll just go home then!" Naruto called out in no one in particular, then turned to leave.

He began the long trek home, overall happy with the outcome of the days events, though one continuos regret nagged at his mind.

"Sakura-chan." He kept walking, but his pace slowed, and his head fell to his chest again. He dragged his feet one at a time and before he knew it he was home.

He opened his door and stepped into his apartment, ripping of his shoes, shirt, and vest, and falling on his small bed.

"Well, maybe I can make it up to her tomorrow... god I'm such an idiot!"

He tossed and turned in bed before finally falling asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Naruto awoke with a spring in his step. His night had been filled with dreams of him making up with Sakura, and them going on a date, and getting married. Needless to say, he was in a brighter mood. He leapt out of bed, and made his way to his closet.

"Well, I still don't have a jacket..." A knock on the door brought Naruto out of his thought. "Hello?"

He walked to the door and pulled it open. There was no one there, but on his doorstep was a packaged bundle. Naruto lifted it up and took it inside, as he laid it on his table a note fell to the floor. He read it to himself.

'Saw you needed one, figured my student would need one that fit my personality... an old family jacket I had lying around the house. Camouflage seal sewn into it, use it well!

-Kakashi'

Naruto pulled the packing away and pulled out a green hooded jacket, it wasn't elaborate and looked like it was built for the cold, however when Naruto put it on, he quickly found it was comfortable and he didn't feel to warm at all.

He smiled to himself, then collected his weapons and left his house.

_'Thanks Kakashi-sensei, now I won't have to buy a new jacket!'_

He leapt off his balcony, and landed softly below. As he stood up, he saw Ino walking his way.

_'Shit, I don't wanna deal with her today!'_

Thinking quickly, he jumped into a nearby bush. He pulled his hood up over his face, hoping to blend with the shrubbery. However he knew the bush was to small to properly hide him, and he just hoped against hope Ino was to stupid to see him.

"What the hell? Where'd that idiot go?"

Naruto looked at Ino as she inspected the bush. She stared for a moment, then shrugged and walked away. When she was safely away, Naruto stood up and removed his hood.

"She couldn't see me? It was like I... like I was invisible." Naruto thought for a moment, "The camouflage seal! Thats why she couldn't see me... hmm, lets see how good this coat really is!"

Naruto sped off toward the Hokage mansion, clinging to bushes and walls the whole way.

**Sorry for the long wait, I've been apart from a computer for some time now...but I'm back, and hopefully I'll get to finishing some of these stories, thanks for your continued support...and ENJOY!**

**MORE TO COME.**


	4. Chapter 4

_'This new jackets a trip!' _Naruto thought to himself as he ducked from wall to wall, leapt from tree to tree, and dashed from bush to bush, _'I've nearly made it all the way to the Hokage tower, and no one's spotted me!'_

As Naruto sat perched in a tall tree, he spotted his teammates below him, slowly approaching the entrance to the Hokage's mansion.

_'Hah, this'll be great,' _Naruto leapt into the cover of a nearby bush,_ 'They'll all think I'm late, but I'll really be right next to them... that will impress Sakura!'_

"Alright guys, everyones here... lets head inside." Kakashi spoke to his pupils, "C'mon, we don't have time to waste."

_'Coming from the guy who was hours late to our first meeting!' _Naruto stuck out his camouflaged tongue.

Sakura looked around, she didn't want to say anything. She was still angry with Naruto, but she still cared for him enough to not want him to miss their first mission.

"Kakashi sensei?" Kakashi looked at Sakura, a bored expression graced what was visible of his face. It was like he knew what she was going to ask, "Where is Naruto?"

"Oh, I'm sure he'll show up sooner or later, now come on."

The doors of the great Hokage tower opened, and the team scurried in. As they closed, Sakura found herself still worrying about Naruto.

Naruto on the other hand, was elated beyond care. He was currently walking directly behind his teammates.

_'I can't believe they didn't spot me...but that was awfully mean of Kakashi to just walk in without me.'_

Now that they were inside, walking down a populated hallway, Naruto had more trouble blending in. There were only so many shadows to hide in, and he knew that soon enough he would have to give away his position. Then, a miracle!

"Attention staff, we will now switch to emergency power, this is just a drill, repeat this is just a drill."

The lights turned off for a moment, then a the single emergency light illuminated a small fraction of the hallway.

_'YES!'_ Naruto had no trouble blending in now, he merely followed suit as his teammates moved through to the next room. _'As long as this drill keeps up till we reach the Hokage's office, it will be smooth sailing from here on out.'_

The drill went on just long enough for the team to reach the office of the Hokage, just as they walked in through the door the lights flickered back on.

"Ah glad you all found your way in the dark," The hokage chuckled at his bad joke, "Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto...let us what mission we have for you today."

Sakura almost argued, but stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head to see Naruto flashing her a thumbs up. She jumped in fright.

"Sakura what's wrong." Kakashi looked down at her, and she stared at him in confusion. Sasuke had also noticed Naruto, and was confused as well, "Are you two okay? Naruto, do you know what's wrong with them?

Naruto scratched his head and grinned.

"No idea sensei."

The third Hokage stared at the strange spectacle before him, confused, and feeling out of the loop.

"May I proceed!"

The ninja quickly regained their composure. Kakashi nodded at the Hokage.

"Good, " The hokage shuffled the papers on his desk before continuing, "Now normally, I'd start a genin team such as yours on simple milk run missions...but you four are a special case."

The hokage stood up and walked to the window, staring outside over the village.

"The ultimate goal of ninja, is to grow strong enough to protect the ones he loves...and in order to grow stronger we need to meet challenges. I see no sense in wasting such a fine display of raw talent on simplistic missions... therefore, I am assigning you all to an C-rank mission."

Naruto's face lit up, _'A CHANCE TO PROVE MYSELF IN COMBAT!'_

"Well where are we going, when are going, what are we doing!"

"Calm down Naru-"

"What are we gonna be doing, are we gonna fight th-"

"Naruto!"

The Hokage cleared his throat, silencing both Kakashi and Naruto.

"It won't be specifically challenging... our guards caught sight of three strange looking shinobi near our south wall, we want you to investigate...if they try to attack you will be there as back up for Kakashi...you will not yourselves engage in the fight unless instructed by Kakashi... understood?"

Naruto nodded absentmindedly, his thoughts drifting to the upcoming battle. His blood was burning and his heart was racing.

"You are dismissed, good luck."

* * *

_'Alright!, this is going to be great!'_ Naruto could barley contain his excitement, "This is gonna be great!"

"Control yourself Naruto, this is going to be routine... odds are they're just some vagrants seeking shelter. I doubt you will see any combat."

Naruto ignored Kakashi, and smiled to himself.

"Naruto..." Sasuke spoke up for the first time that morning, "How did you sneak up on us like that."

Naruto chuckled to himself.

"Sorry Sasuke, thats my little secret." He scratched his head and smiled at the Uchiha.

"Naruto, no secrets between teammates..." Kakashi said absentmindedly.

"But-you-I-ugh! Fine, if you must know, my new jacket has a camouflage seal."

From beside Naruto, Sakura's temper flared.

"So, I see you got a new jacket after all." Feeling betrayed, she quickened her pace to keep in step with Sasuke.

"No Sakura-chan, I didn't buy it with-"

"Shh, Naruto...there they are." Kakashi stopped walking, "Something isn't right."

**MORE to come, read and review**


	5. Chapter 5

**New chapter, tried to make it longer to make up for the wait, but nothing makes up for months of waiting.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy.**

The three genin trailed behind their hesitant sensei, worry in their eyes. They slowly continued through the clearing, then Kakashi halted.

"There's more of them then we thought, see over there," The genin followed Kakashi's pointed finger in to the distance, where five men dressed in ragged clothes were standing. "Keep your distance... Naruto come here."

Naruto stepped forward, and his nervous sweating was clearly visible to the veteran warrior.

"Easy boy, we're all gonna be fine."

Kakashi placed a warming hand on his student. With a nod Kakashi's eyes changed into the Sharingan, Naruto understood and followed suit.

Kakashi cleared his throat and spoke toward the mysterious men.

"Your attention please, we are shinobi of the hidden leaf. You will give us your reason for being here."

The men walked slowly into view, they were tall and lean, and they all held weapons.

"NARUTO!"

Naruto gave his sensei a quick nod, and his hands began to move faster than sound.

His two teammates stared amazed as the boy shot a dragon made of pure fire out at the invaders.

"DRAGON FLAME JUTSU!" The jutsu engulfed the would be attackers, charring the grass and setting the woods aflame. The heat licked the leaf shinobi, and when the roaring flames finally passed, their clothes were singed. Long seconds passed, then Sasuke spoke.

"I think that got 'em."

Kakashi stepped forward, seemingly oblivious to the words of his student. The flames had burned away the grass at the end of the clearing, and a small shinning metal post was visible. A small electrical charged began to emit from the tip of the post, and Kakashi quickly turned to his students.

"GET DOW-"

His words were cut off as a ray of light shot outward over the clearing. When it finally passed, the clearing stood empty.

Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were gone.

* * *

Naruto's feet hit the desert floor in an explosion of sand. The vibrations shook his left leg and his hip twisted on impact. He spiraled downward as his leg gave out from underneath him and his face hit the sand hard.

He lifted his head up slowly, sick with his sudden change of setting. Not able to hold back his stomach, he vomited into the sand beneath him. His ears were still ringing, and the feeling of having been ripped apart ached his every nerve. His head dropped, landing in his own filth. The strong stench that filled his nose began to clear his head, and his vertigo slowly passed. Picking up his head he wiped his fingers across his face, cleansing it of his sick. As he ran his fingers through the course desert sand to clean them, he became painfully aware of his surroundings.

A vast wasteland filled his vision, rolling hills of sand and the bright blue sky his only companions.

And of course the sun. Something flew across it, creating a large shadow across the landscape. Naruto craned his head to see it's source, a large buzzard was flying in circles above him.

The beast dropped, then landed next to the genin. Naruto stared at the abomination, a disgusting creature with a large neck that looked like it was made of raw meat. Its eyes glanced at Naruto, then it plunged its face into the vomit under Naruto, cutting the boy's fingers with its razor sharp beak.

Naruto reached out his arm, lunging at the hideous creature. The bird stepped out of the way, easily avoiding Naruto in his disoriented state. As the buzzard took off, the flapping of its wings were overlapped with the sound of distant hooves.

Looking behind him, Naruto saw three stampeding camels charging toward him. The men on their backs swung shining blades through the air. Standing up slowly Naruto grew aware of another painful fact.

His clothes were gone. There he was in the desert, separated from his team, awaiting the arrival of frightening men with swords, and to top everything off... He was naked.

The desert men quickly approached, and began trot around Naruto in a circle.

As they ordered him to give up or be killed, Naruto found himself presented with a choice.

Fight men he knew nothing about, who could possibly easily kill a thirteen year old genin, even on of his standing. Or be taken into slavery.

The answer was obvious.

The boy slowly dropped to a knee, closing his eyes as he did so. When he opened them, they had changed into the swirling red and black of the Sharingan. Leaping out from the sand, he slammed his feet into the chest of the nearest Sand person, launching him out of his saddle, and dragging his camel down with him. Naruto grabbed the man's sword as they headed to the ground, when the genin landed he twirled the rudimentary weapon into the neck of the camel, ending it's life.

Backflipping from the side of the camel, Naruto's feet landed on his next victims saddle, swinging his fist around to dislocate the jaw of the rider. Spinning in the saddle he released his sword, and it twirled in the air, landing in the chest of the last Desert Warrior. Naruto stepped slowly off the camel, calming it with a pat on the jaw.

The camel with the now impaled rider stampeded off into the unknown, dooming itself.

Naruto began to walk to the man he had just knocked off, who was now currently trying in vain to relocate his jaw. Lifting his foot, Naruto kicked the mans windpipe, ending his life in a short crunch. Naruto then turned to the only remaining man, who was begging for his life.

"Please, please don't kill me! I have a family!"

The words family sparked Naruto's mind, and a thought crossed him.

"If you want to live, then you'll take me to civilization." The man nodded, and Naruto outstretched his arm, helping the man to his feet. The man caught his breath, and dusted himself off.

Naruto walked over to the dead man and stripped his clothes from him. As he put them on he turned to his new companion.

"Were you friends?"

"Hardly, I should be thanking you for killing him..."

Naruto wrapped the mans dessert scarf around his neck, and adjusted the fabric now wrapped around his fingers and fore-arms.

"You wanna show gratitude, help me find my friends."

"Good god! There are more of you!"

Naruto chuckled to himself at the fear he instilled in the desert man. He tightened the desert boots that his legs now stood in, and hopped onto the camel. Patting the spot of the saddle behind him, Naruto waited for his new ally to mount up.

"Um, where are we going?"

"First to find my friends, then you will take us to civilization... then you can go free."

The man nodded his head and jumped onto the camel. Naruto stared at him, and the man quickly understood.

"Hah!" With his ordering shout, the camel took off, "So what do your friends look like?"

Naruto stared outward into the desert, scanning the arid landscape for his teammates.

"They'll be naked."

* * *

Sasuke pulled a large rag out from underneath dead camel he now stood before. Its dried blood caked the washed out fabric. He had no idea of its purpose, the customs of desert people were unfamiliar to him, but in the rag he saw a chance to protect his pale skin from the bright sun.

Ripping the fabric in to, he handed one section to his pink haired companion.

"Thank you..."

Sasuke said nothing, as Sakura wrapped her fabric around herself, he did the same.

It had been roughly an hour since they had found each-other, and approximately two since they arrived in the sandy wasteland. Sasuke had landed with relative ease, and quickly set out to find his lost companions, when he discovered Sakura, she was cradling herself against a rock face. Noting the position of the sun they had taken shelter there, and after a quick search of the premises, Sasuke uncovered the dead camel.

Sakura had been blushing like mad since they found each-other, covering herself with her hands, but she had not to worry for Sasuke never even looked at her. On the other hand, Sasuke had shamelessly walked around in the nude, much to Sakura's teenaged girlish delight.

But now they were both clothed, abet uncomfortably, and the sun was setting so they returned to the rock face. It was curved slightly at the top and it's back faced the wind, giving them protection from the elements.

But it was still ungodly cold.

Sakura watched as the sun left her sight, and she began to shiver uncontrollably. Turning her head to Sasuke, she saw that he was doing the same. Several long minutes of suffering the cold sparked her courage, and she spoke up.

"S-s-sS-sSAs-Sasuke-ke?

"Hu-rmm?"

"Y-y-you th-th-think we sh-shshs-should get c-c-c-clc-clcos-closer? T-tto pers-e-r-r-"

Before Sakura could finish, the Uchiha latched his cold body on to hers. Sakura blushed madly once more, but she soon felt warmer, and fell into a deep sleep.

**More to come, this is still a naruto sakura pairing so don't freak out.**


	6. Chapter 6

YESTERDAY

As the blinding light filled his vision, Kakashi found his sharingan shut off by the energy. Closing his eyes quickly, he reactivated it before the burst absorbed his body.

In slow motion he could see a wave of electricity encompassing the area were he and his students stood. He was not fast enough to push his teammates out of the way, and watched as their bodies disappeared from his view.

He screamed in vain for no sound came out of his masked face, Seeing a large circle of electricity rush towards him, he tucked and rolled out of it's way. A tree that once stood behind him was absorbed and ripped from existence.

Just as Kakashi began to lose hope, he turned to see another swirling electric mass rushing towards the strangers who caused all this. Thinking on his feet he dashed towards them, and as the mass absorbed them he followed in their wake, disappearing...

Then reappearing. He found himself in a swirling blue chasm, the thunderous sound of crackling electricity bombarding his ear drums. The strangers walked onward, unaware of Kakashi trailing behind them. The man who was leading the way stopped, and his companions stopped with them. Holding out his hand, he seemed to slice the whirling vortex as it spun, creating a glowing doorway before them.

They stepped into, and Kakashi dashed toward them, breaking through the door as it sealed itself shut.

Kakashi found himself flying through dry air, the shining sun beaming down on him as he descended. As he hit a sandy dune he rolled, kicking up dirt and plummeting him downwards towards the strangers who waited beneath the hill.

The sound of his fall alerted the mysterious men, and in a strange language that shouted to each-other, drawing their weapons in a flash.

'Shit.' Kakashi used his sharingan to slow his fall, and using the momentum of his roll he kicked himself upward, sending his body toward the strangers, the chidori already forming in his hand. "LIGHTNING BLADE!"

He struck downward at his would be attackers with a less than lethal fury, crippling them with blinding sand and electric bursts. He grabbed the only standing stranger by the collar, lifting him up off the ground and thrusting him towards Kakashi's face.

"WHO ARE YOU?" His voice echoed with a sort of calm anger, the reverb of his aggression matched by what seemed to be carelessness, "Before I get really angry."

The stranger swallowed the saliva in his throat.

* * *

TODAY

"Naruto, in the cave up there!"

Naruto scanned the horizon for the landmark his new companion spoke of, his eyes quickly spotted a small rock face jutting out from the sandy terrain. In the cave were what seemed to be two people, huddled together and wrapped in rags.

"Well its the best we've got, HAH!" Naruto had grown strangely attached to the beast he now rode, and in the past couple of hours, he had even taken to naming it, "Onward Ramen!"

Kicking its legs and snorting, the camel trotted off in the direction of the cave.

"Naruto... why do you call the camel by that name, what is this ramen?"

Naruto's eyes lit up with a confused fury.

"WHAT! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT RAMEN IS!"

* * *

Sakura shook herself awake, she was dreaming. Of Naruto. The dream was so real, she could've sworn that she had just heard his voice.

"Naruto?" Her voice was weak with sleep, and the man she was sleeping next to barely heard her.

"Mhmnhrm"

Remembering Sasuke was next to her she blushed like mad, then a familiar voice once again filled her ears.

"GUYS! OVER HERE!"

"Naruto!"

"GRRR!" Sasuke sat up with a start, he only hated himself a little for wishing Naruto had died out in the desert last night. He threw himself up and out of his rags, marching towards the oncoming camel.

"Naruto!" Naruto leapt down from the camel, making his way towards his friends... then he saw that Sasuke was naked.

"Um... hey... um... S-" He looked away. "God this is weird."

Naruto took off his dessert vest and handed it to the Uchiha.

"Here, um wrap it around your... junk."

The Uchiha did so, forming a sort of loincloth that covered his private parts. It was then that Naruto noticed Sakura.

"SAKURA!" He waved to her, but she remained huddle in her rags at the mouth of the cave-like rock face.

"Um... Hi Naruto."

Thinking quickly, Naruto realized that Sakura was naked too. Raging teenaged hormones dared him to be insulted, dared him to yell at her for being so modest... dared him to look at her.

But he said no to them, and stripped of his dessert tunic, leaving him in a ragged tee shirt. He threw the jacket over to Sakura and turned away.

Sasuke walked into his face, a fist closed at his side. There was hot anger in his words as he spoke.

"Any word from Kakashi?"

"I haven't seen him since we... got here."

"Incompetent."

Sasuke walked away with a grunt, leaving Naruto puzzled at what he had done wrong. When he suddenly felt to hands clasp over his eyes.

"Guess who?"

"Iruka sensei?" A small fist hit Naruto in the small of his back.

"Its okay Naruto, you can turn around now." Sakura was now clothes in the tunic, which covered her decently enough. She motioned her hand toward the camel and its occupant, "Who are they?"

Naruto walked toward the camel.

"My new friends guys, hop on. We still have to find Kakashi-sensei."

**AGAIN, SORRY ABOUT WAIT AND SHORT CHAPTERS, MORE TO COME.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry about outrageously long wait and ill-compensation. And please forgive me about the discrepancy about Kakashi's sharingan, I completely forgot he couldn't just switch it off.  
**

A village stood several dunes away from the traveling camel, and the sleeping people on it would have passed without knowing had the two men on the ground not awakened them.

"Sakura, Sasuke, there seems to be a town of some sort up ahead, do you guys wanna see if they have clothes or food?"

Sasuke groaned in his exhaustive sleep, and Sakura said nothing. Naruto turned to his desert wandering companion, who nodded through his dehydration. Naruto turned, and the group began the long march to the village.

Nothing much had changed in the few hours they had been on the march, except for their growing thirst. Naruto's eyes ached, he had nothing to shield them from the bright piercing sun, even when he closed his eyes he felt the burn through ther lids. He wished his hair didn't defy gravity so naturally, he wished it fell across his face like Sakura's, or Sasuke's, or whatever his name was.

"So what's your story man?" Naruto felt bad for making the stranger talk through his dry cracked throat, but the boredom was almost more deadly than the threat of dehydration, "What are you doing out here in the desert?"

The man tried to clear his throat, but no saliva meant no moisture, and a hissing hacking cough was all he accomplished. Naruto flashed the man an apologetic look, but he shook his head in response.

"I'm sort of a pirate."

"Don't you need an ocean for that?"

"That's why I said sort of. My name is Malik, those people you killed, well them and I would rob and kill the middle man, the person who takes the goods to the consumer? We would steal from them and sell them to the slave trade, or if they were old or undesirable, we would leave them in the desert to die."

Naruto said nothing.

"I've done awful things, if it's any consolation we would have taken you into slavery, instead of... leaving you... to..."

"We're here."

* * *

The town was deserted, and as Naruto returned to the camel with clothes for Sakura and Sasuke, his face was covered with soot, they didn't bother asking where he found them. They changed behind respective buildings, then gave him back his tunic, and his vest.

"Okay guys, we've made little to no progress so far, as evidenced by this ghost town we just dropped ourselves into."

He gazed over the faces of his thirsty companions, he met their looks with no consolation. They were going to die of thirst, and they were powerless to stop it, but Naruto had never been powerless, and he didn't intend to start now.

"Now I know the reason most villages get abandoned is because they run out of resource, but maybe we got lucky and all this people just died of a disease..."

They almost ignored him completely, only Sakura gave the brief ghost of a nod. Naruto sighed, then took toward the centre of the village, seeking a well.

It may have been beautiful once, but Naruto saw nothing of it now. The houses were cracking, any paint that once adorned them had faded with the sandy wind. All the doors were either broken or open, and a good majority of the roofs had caved in, filling the buildings with sand and clay. Naruto had to walk for several minutes before he gained a general sense of direction, and ultimately he was able to find the middle of the town.

And just as he predicted, a well stood alone in the centre.

Naruto sprinted toward it, quickly turning the lever, he was met with disappointment as he saw the frayed rope. If there was a bucket full of cold water, it was at the bottom. Naruto lifted himself to the top of the well, hoping to peer downward. What he saw was not a pool of water, or even the inside of a well, but instead a circular door, with an inscription.

"GUYS! GET OVER HERE!"

He heard his own echo, but no response from his allies, his thirst was unbearable, and instead of waiting it out he decided to open the door. It lifted up easily, it was made of what seemed to be a light metal, and underneath it was a ladder that led downward. Turning back again, and seeing his companions had not heard his call, he began the climb downward.

The door slammed shut behind him. Naruto then realized, he had no way of seeing. Gripping tightly to the ladder, he inched through the descent, step after step. He almost slipped once or twice, but before long his was stepping into three feet of water, however he still couldn't see.

"Oh wait!" Naruto slapped his hand to his face, "FIRE-BALL JUTSU!"

The flame swirled in front of Naruto, and he saw what must have been hundreds of rats, and dozens of skeletons.

He screamed.

* * *

Sakura was woken from her dreams of water by a scream that seemed to come from the ground.

"Guys?" Her voice was harsh, but it was loud enough to rouse Sasuke from his sleep, and draw Malik's attention, "Listen..."

A muffled series of expletives seemed to erupt from the ground.

"Naruto?"

Silence for a moment, then a barely audible response,

"Sakura? How'd you get down here?"

"Nar-" Sakura's throat refused her the ability to speak, instead she made a fist, looked toward Sasuke, and hit the ground softly. Sasuke nodded to her.

"Sakura? There's so much water down here! You guys, I got lost, I can't find the ladder! There are dead things down here!"

The earth shattered, and Naruto was blinded by the light.

**Thanks for the patience, many apologies, more to come.**


	8. Chapter 8

The group began to gorge themselves on water, but something was amiss. What next? Where would they go? How would the find Kakashi sensei, or even other people in this vast desert? Naruto had an idea.

"Now this well was locked off for a reason... my guess is the village moved someplace else along the underground river and closed the well so they wouldn't loose any water."

"So?" Sasuke stopped drinking long enough to rebut, "How does that help us?"

"We just follow the water to its new well." Sakura said confidently, "Good plan Naruto!"

Naruto's face reddened, although he had been getting a lot of praise from Sakura lately, he still wasn't quite used to it. Shoving his hands into the pockets of his desert pants, he stared up into the sun. A frown found its way to his face.

"There's a problem... We don't have any light... none that will last anyway." Naruto's eyes locked onto one of the many skeletons that sat in the water, he stripped off its leg, pulled away the foot, and wrapped it with his desert vest.

"Sasuke hold this." The Uchiha grunted, "C'mon, I need to use a fire jutsu."

"You hold it! I know fire jutsus too you know!" Naruto shrugged, and hold the make-shift torch away from his body. Sasuke smirked as fire erupted from his lips, and the torch was soon alight.

"Awesome work Sasuke!" Sakura cheered.

The Uchiha frowned, he didn't need any more appraisal from her.

"We should get moving..." Naruto frowned again, "What about Ramen?"

"You do know camels are natural to the desert right? This is his home, he should be fine." Malik said, his voice was clear and crisp again. The water had imbued new life in all of them.

"Good, now let's move."

Naruto took the lead, and the others followed suit. The walk was long, and the only thing they could do to pass the time was talk, so talk they did.

"So... um, how is everybody?" At first no one answered Naruto, but then Sasuke chimed in with an insult.

"Idiot, how can you ask that sort of question?" Sakura was conflicted, but she said nothing in Naruto's defense, this only slightly saddened the Uzumaki, after all he was used to it that way.

Hours of silence passed before they saw a ladder. Naruto handed the torch to Sasuke, who stared at it like it was a disease before grabbing it.

"I'll climb up and see whats, uh, up."

The others nodded, they were all worried, and having a leader, albeit a reluctant one, comforted them greatly. Well, except for Sasuke, who was greatly insulted by Naruto's guidance.

The ladder led to another door, slightly more ornate then the one at the village, and as Naruto opened it it creaked on squeaky hinges. He peered his eyes out slowly, and found himself in a large windowed room, the sunlight shone in, and a cool breeze filled the room. He pulled himself out of the well and inspected the room.

The walls were covered in jade tiles, and adorned with gold symbols of what seemed to be great battles. The floor was equally decorated, but in dark blue tiles with silver symbols. Outside the window, a real oasis, water and palm trees, hundreds of houses, but as fare as Naruto could tell, still no people. In the centre of the room, several feet from the corner where the well stood, was a large golden chest.

Naruto placed his hands on the chest and tried to pull it open, it did so without resistance. Inside the chest were what seemed to be the equipment of a ninja, and a large scroll.

"Naruto?"

Sakura's voice echoed up to him from below.

"All clear, come on up."

Once the others had taken their place beside Naruto, he unrolled the scroll, revealing a large map. They all analyzed it for some time, except Sasuke, who dismissed the map as useless. It was indeed very large, and had every country on it. There was a key near the bottom, several totem like symbols, that corresponded with different points on the map.

Sasuke fondled the ninja gear in the chest. Sakura began to argue, but silenced herself. The Uchiha tightened his guantlets, his boots, his scarf, and his chest plate, then spoke.

"Let's go." And like that he was the leader, and Sakura and Malik moved to follow him. But Naruto didn't move, he sat down cross-legged and stared hard at the map.

"Wait a second... these totems, don't they look like..."

"Look like what Naruto?"

"Ignore him Sakura, Naruto we are leaving."

"They look like the things that got us here! The poles with the light!" The attention of Sakura was trapped, and Malik refused to move, so Sasuke stood still, "There are other ones... throughout the map, different countries, different villages... this must be some sort of global conspiracy... but for what?"

They all stood confused.

"That probably has nothing to do with anything! You're just being paranoid Naruto."

"I don't think so, there must be something else... " Naruto reached into the chest, searching for something that just wasn't there, "That can't be all."

Sasuke's blood ran cold, he had gone to place his hands in his pockets, and his fingers had touched the parchment of a scroll. He cleared his throat.

"Forget it Naruto, there's nothing there. Come on... Let's go."

Sakura looked at Naruto apologetically and got up, walking to Sasuke's side. Malik extended a hand and lifted Naruto to his feet. They all walked out of the room, but Naruto's head hang low.


	9. Chapter 9

Malik's vomit painted the bark of a nearby palm tree, the contaminated water wreaking its havoc on his insides. Naruto felt awful, being ninja, he and his friends had trained to be able to ingest tainted substances from a young age, and though it hadn't occurred to Naruto at the time, Malik had no such training. Now Naruto was able to figure how it was that the whole of the desert Eden had been abandoned, the dead bodies had poisoned the water. Naruto looked down at Malik apologetically, but he had no answer to his new friends dilemma.

"Leave him."

Naruto threw Sasuke a glare, but the Uchiha did nothing. Before Naruto could argue against Sasuke's proposal, Malik passed out.

"Do whatever, I'm going to take a look in some of these buildings."

"I'll go with you." Sakura said. Sasuke turned sharply.

"No." He said, "Stay here with Naruto. It will only take a moment."

Sasuke dipped into a nearby house. Closing the door behind him. He hadn't had time to read whatever was in his new gear.

It was a scroll, and on the scroll was various blueprints of an elaborate series of interconnected pipelines, made from chakra. The chakra lines were all focused into large metal stakes that were forced into the ground, it resembled what had brought them here very closely. Scrawled under the blueprints were notes, written in very fine handwriting. Sasuke had some trouble deciphering it.

Naruto closed Malik's eye-lids as he felt the man's heart slow to a stop. He could not hide the tears he was shedding.

"I'm going to find a place to bury him..."

Naruto's voice sounded different, Sakura had noticed the gradual deepening since they had arrived, she had assumed it was simply him growing... but he sounded more mature, as if the few days out alone in the desert had hardened him, made him cold. Sakura didn't like what this experience was doing to him, it made her sad in the deepest part of her being. If they didn't get home soon, she feared Naruto would lose everything he once was, and end up more like Sasuke.

They needed to find Kakashi, and Quick.

* * *

Kakashi held the sobbing man in his arms, not knowing what to do to console the poor, misguided soul.

"I'm so... sorry... we just needed your help. I didn't mean to- Don't hurt me... please..."

"Okay, Okay!" Kakashi said, "Just please explain to me what is going on."

The desert man nodded and cleared his throat. For a moment he looked around hoplessley, but all his companions were still knocked out. He would have to handle the scary silver haired man on his own.

Kakashi pulled his headband back over Obito's eye.

"The first thing that you should know... is that we are a dying nation."

Kakashi nodded and implored the man to continue.

"It started in some of our villages smaller outposts, all of the sudden, all of the residents would die... vicious wounds on everyone. Men, women, children... all brutally murdered." The old man held back tears as he continued, "At first we thought it was an isolated incident, but it spread from village to village. We only have a few safe havens left..."

Kakashi continued to listen.

"No matter what we did, posting armed guards, militia, even our best warriors... by morning they were all dead. No survivors, no witnesses." He cleared his throat, but found it hard to swallow, "Every day, more villages are... destroyed. In desperation, we turned to myths and legends. We have heard tale of totems spread throughout the world, some of which lead to the homes of the greatest warriors on the earth."

Kakashi's mind began to unravel the mystery of where he was.

"But that's all the totems were... myths, until we discovered a map... and this monolith, right here." The man pointed to a tall black stone, "A few of us decided to try it, knowing full well we might not make it back... we lit the monolith aflame, like the map described, and we ended up in your world."

Kakashi opened his mouth to ask more questions, but the man spoke.

"The language you speak is taught to us in school, but it isn't our first language... it's evidence of when your people walked among us... you startled us by speaking it, and even more when you attacked. Everything went wrong... your friends are okay, but the portals they followed stranded them in random parts of the desert... they could be miles away, or hundreds of miles... and because they followed a separate portal than the main one, they lost anything inanimate."

"No clothes, no weapons..." Kakashi surmised.

"No offense friend... but I doubt they still live."

"Well friend..." Kakashi said calmly, "You don't know them as well as I do."

The desert man nodded, confused.

"Take me to one of your safe havens... I'm sure my friends will find their way to one as well. In the mean time, let's see if we can save your nation."

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" The desert man blubbered, and moved to wake his friends. Kakashi summoned a shadow clone.

"If you find them, take them to the monolith. I'll be back in a day to check..."

The shadow clone nodded, and walked off into the desert. Soon, he disappeared from sight.

* * *

Sasuke left the small house, he had read the scroll completely, and knew exactly where they needed to go. Not that he would ever admit it, but Naruto had been right, the totems were connected to their trip to this strange land. In fact they were the cause of it. According to the scroll, the central focus point of the totem was a large monolith in the desert, several miles west of this deserted village. If they were lucky, they could get there in a few hours, if not... it might take a few days. Either way, they needed to leave now.

Naruto was rubbing the ground for some reason, and Sakura watched on with sad eyes. Whatever those two idiots were doing, it was delaying their departure.

"Let's go guys." Sasuke looked around, Malik, or whatever his name was, was nowhere to be found.

"Okay..." Naruto said sadly, standing up slowly. Sakura walked over to him, and hugged him. Sasuke watched as Naruto cringed beneath her touch, then give in to the warmth. It sickened him.

"I said let's go."

"Sasuke-kun... Naru-" Sakura began to explain, but Sasuke had already figured it out. He might've been cold, but he wasn't heartless. Walking over, he joined the hug.

"I'm sorry Naruto... he was a good man, but we need to go."

Naruto wiped a single tear from his eye, and nodded. Together, they headed out in the direction of the monolith, and hopefully, toward an escape.


End file.
